Being home
after surgery and 5 days of hospitalization feels wonderful. There is no one to blame but myself for the self
inflicted injury I suffered while working outside, but there are many people to
thank for helping me while I was hurt and sick.
I will get to that later in the blog.
In his
book, A Pirate Looks at Fifty, Jimmy Buffet writes that travel outside
the U.S. U.S. Panama
Since only
about 20 percent of native born Americans have their passport that means around
80% have never traveled outside the country for that eye-opening experience of
foreign travel that Jimmy Buffet writes about.
That is easy to understand. For over
50 years, from sometime after the end of WWII up until sometime before 911, the
United States Mexico U.S.A. Mexico Mexico U.S. Mexico U.S. U.S. U.S. U.S.
My wife and
I do not return to the U.S. U.S. United States Panama U.S.
Early on a
Sunday morning when I realized I was in trouble from my injury, Belinda called
the surgeon at home on his cell phone and he told us to go immediately to the hospital
and that he would be waiting for us. He
was waiting at the admission desk for us, by-passing the emergency room. First question….”Do you have insurance?” I answered, “No, I’ll self pay”. “Good, give us a $300.00 deposit and sign
here. Do you want a private room?” was
the concise response. I took the private
room option and was in my room hooked to an I.V. within minutes. No complicated paperwork, no filling out
forms, no delay, no hassle whatsoever. Just
$300.00 and signature and I was being helped by what seemed to be an army of
caregivers.
Over the
next 5 days there were x-rays, numerous ulta-sounds, a cat scan, an EKG,
general anesthesia surgery, lots of I.V. delivered painkiller, antibiotics,
temperature and blood pressure checks and pretty good food when I could eat. There were no requests for money beyond the
first $300.00 deposit I made on that early Sunday morning, other than 60 cents
for extra coffee. Remember that I have
no insurance. However, every two days
they brought me an itemized accounting of what my bill was up to that moment so
there were no financial surprises.
The nurses
and the doctors all seemed to enjoy their work and care about me. When it came time to be discharged from the
hospital I did have one question about the bill which was answered and explained
within moments with another detailed statement. Because I am retired, without asking, they surprised
me with a 20 percent discount on the already very reasonable hospital charges. With
the swipe of a credit card we were on our way home, feeling grateful to the professional
and friendly staff of Mae Lewis Hospital in David, Panama. Thanks to Dr. Cattan for being so accessible
and doing the surgery that brought me immediate relief. Thanks to Dr. DeGracias for his managing my
infection and for being so friendly and interested in me. Thanks to my wife, Belinda, who made the long
trip back and forth to the hospital daily and for taking care of everything on
the farm while I was gone. Thanks to my
friend Mike Smith for bringing me really good hot coffee each morning and thus
saving me the 60 cents for extra coffee. Also thanks to those who were concerned and
who came to see me.
Healthcare
is an important consideration for those who expatriate from the United States U.S. Panama
P.S. If you
can afford it, get a passport and follow Jimmy Buffet’s advice and explore the world,
learn a new language and explore other cultures. It will change you. If you can’t afford to travel it may be
because it costs so damn much to live where you are that there are no funds left
over for international travel. If you
are not young enough to back pack, use the internet to explore the world and
your options for healthcare outside the U.S.
